Befriending stress

Aren’t we all busy?Is being stressed became almost a norm in our society?So much of our lives seems to pass by in a blur, running from appointment to appointment, chasing our tails. And we’re reacting like crazy to external events over which we have no control.

Stress is something that we all face on a daily basis, we usually forget how important it is to chill and enjoy our times. This month we will explore the topic of befriending stress, increasing resilience, so instead of getting burnt out you can transform it to improve your focus and productivity.

In my practice I frequently hear people say things like,‘I can’t relax, I don’t know how to do it’, or, ‘I feel stressed to the point of feeling sick but don’t know how to handle it’.

If you have the tendency to constantly say or think that ‘I am / feel stressed’ or ‘I can’t cope any more’ below is something you can do in 1 minute to ease the feeling immediately.

The first and most important is to become and stay curious about what’s going on for you. Ask yourself the following questions to help identify what stress means to you – it is different for everyone.

Is stress a physical sensation? If yes, where do you feel the tension in your body?

Is it an emotional feeling? If yes, what’s the most frequent emotion you experience? What do you do to go through this challenging emotion? Do you try to ignore and suppress it?

Does stress affect your behavior? Are situations getting out of control?

Is stress a story in your mind? If yes, what is it?

It can also be a combination of the above and if this is the case you can observe which one starts it all off and discover your own unique stress pattern.

How you think about stress matters. Research shows that people who are more aware of their response and view that stress response as helpful can deal with physical, emotional and mental challenges better.

Throughout February I will share more resources, tips & tricks about befriending stress, so stay tuned in. I am more than happy to respond to questions you may have related to the topic - please feel free to email or phone me.